In line with its mandate to advocate for the protection of human rights defenders before international and regional mechanisms, ISHR presented the situation of defenders' protection on the continent.
From 15 to 22 October, 16 defenders from across Africa took part in ISHR's capacity-strengthening programme on the African Commission on Human and Peoples’ Rights (ACHPR) for the body’s 85th session.
In light of the UN’s liquidity crisis since 2024, ISHR compares when UN Member States are paying their assessed contributions to the UN’s regular budget over the period 2019-2025.
ISHR analysed how UN Member States voted at the General Assembly Fifth Committee over the past seven years (2018-2024) on initiatives that seek to defund Human Rights Council (HRC) resolutions establishing investigative mechanisms on specific countries. None of these initiatives have so far been successful.
On 22 May, the African Commission concluded its 83rd ordinary session, which saw the State periodic reviews of Ethiopia and Zimbabwe, panels on the repression of human rights defenders, the 1994 genocide in Rwanda, and reparations for Africans and people of African descent, as well as the launch of ISHR’s report on the situation of defenders in African island States and a new e-learning module on the Commission.
As part of the 83rd session of the African Commission on Human and Peoples’ Rights, Commissioner Salma Sassi presented the African Commission’s papers on the state of cooperation with national human rights institutions and non-governmental organisations.
On 8 May 2025, during the 83rd ordinary session of the African Commission on Human and Peoples’ Rights (ACHPR), ISHR delivered a statement under Item 5, which focused on the activity report of the Special Rapporteur on Human Rights Defenders. The statement reaffirmed ISHR’s strong commitment to the protection and empowerment of defenders across Africa.
Are you a human rights defender looking for tips on how to engage with the African Commission on Human and Peoples’ Rights (the African Commission, or ACHPR)? If so, delve into our new e-learning module and discover all you need for real world advocacy in Africa!
In collaboration with ISHR, the Coalition ivoirienne des défenseurs des droits humains (CIDDH) delivered an oral statement before the Human Rights Council (HRC) on the situation of human rights defenders in Côte d’Ivoire during the session on the adoption of the country’s Universal Periodic Review (UPR) report. The statement called for, among other things, the inclusion of human rights defenders in the country’s national human rights defenders protection mechanism.
The 58th session of the UN Human Rights Council (24 February to 4 April 2025) will discuss the protection of human rights defenders, freedom of religion, human rights while countering terrorism, and rights to food and housing. It will also address grave human rights issues in countries like Nicaragua, Venezuela, China, Syria, South Sudan, Iran, North Korea, Myanmar, Eritrea, and the occupied Palestinian territory/Israel, amongst others. Here’s an overview of some of the key issues on the agenda.
